Online Safety

Children and young people spend lots of time on the internet. They may go online to research information for homework or to play games, chat with friends and make new ones.

The internet holds a massive amount of useful information and can also be a really good way of learning about new things and keeping in contact with friends and family. It can also be a very dangerous place so it is important that children are protected and monitored when they are online.

CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection) has lots of information about how to keep your children safe online and parental controls. The link to the website is below:

It can be hard to keep track of what your child is doing online. Or know how to keep them safe. There are so many different social networks, apps and games. Children and young people use social networks to:

You've probably heard of Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat - the most popular networks used by 11-16 year olds. But what about Omegle, Musical.ly and Periscope
To learn more about your children's favourite social networks, their suggested ages and how to use privacy settings, visit Net Aware.

Whatsapp

WhatsApp is the largest global social messaging platform, with over 1.5 billion users per month, and Net Aware have created a free guide for parents & carers which covers what parents & carers need to know about the platform to help safeguard children from potential online risks including; the new age limit (16+), scam messages, connecting with strangers, location sharing and more.

Snapchat

Snapchat is an app that lets you send a photo, short video or message to your contacts. The ‘snap’ appears on screen for up to 10 seconds before disappearing, or there is an option to have no time limit. There’s also a feature called Snapchat Story that lets you share snaps in a sequence for up to 24 hours.

Minimum age according to Snapchat: 13+

NetAware have created a free guide for parents & carers whicvh covers what parents & carers need to know about the platform to help safeguard children from potential online risks.

Online Gaming

Gaming is extremely popular with children. When playing online children have the opportunity to relax, socialise with their friends and have fun. Children can play on games consoles, apps or websites, and chat to other players or watch them play through live-streaming. However there are some dangers to online gaming. And with so many games and apps available online, it can be hard for parents/carers to know how to keep their child safe.

What are the risks of online games?

Children may view inappropriate or upsetting content if they play games that aren't suitable for their age. This could include sexual or violent material. It might be in-game content or produced by other players.

Some players can be abusive towards others or try to exlude them from the game. Some players may also hack another user's account or try to steal and destroy their virtual possessions. This can be as upsetting for a young person as if it happened in real life.

Children may play with adults they don't know. People of all ages play games. Some adults may exploit this and try to build an emotional connection with a child for the purpose of grooming.

Some children may find it hard to stop playing games or find that gaming is getting the way of them doing other activities.

Pokemon Go is a popular online game where you collect and trade cute creatures called Pokémon (Pocket Monsters). There have been concerns raised by the NSPCC regarding the safety of children playing this game. Pokemon Go merges the real world and the virtual world. The game requires the player to travel to find the Pokemon and then swap characters with other players to create the best team.
The NSPCC have created a useful guide for parents/carers of children who are actively playing Pokemon Go on phones or other devices.